Miral's Ghost
by Captain Nora Jones
Summary: Miral sees someone no one else can. Maybe their Captain can live again. The Final chapter is up! I have had a lot of fun writing this. Comments are welcome.
1. Chapter 1

"Mommy there's a lady."

"Where honey?"

"She's following us."

B'Elanna turned and looked over her shoulder. There were lots of families playing in the park, but no lady.

"Miral Paris, don't lie."

"I'm not lying! She's right there."

"Come on," B'Elanna urged her daughter toward the edge of the park. "I think we've had enough of the park today."

"Okay, Mommy," she turned looked over her shoulder and waved. "Bye-bye Captain."

B'Elanna froze. She knelt down and looked her daughter in her blue eyes.

"What did you say?" she asked in a whisper as if she was afraid to disturb the leaves on the tree above them.

"She's a Captain, Mommy."

"What does she look like?"

"She's got pretty brown hair, and blue eyes like mine. She's sad."

B'Elanna felt tears well up in her eyes.

"She was a very special lady."

"You know her?"

B'Elanna nodded.

"Then why can't you see her?"

B'Elanna smiled a sad smile.

"She left us five years ago. She died."

Miral's eyes grew wide as she stared over B'Elanna's shoulder at something only she could see.

"But she's not dead, Mommy. She's right there."

"Would you like to go see the people who knew her?"

"Who Mommy?"

"Kate, Little Wolf, and Chakotay."

"Okay!" the little girl danced with happiness. She was eager to see her friends again.

The bell of Chakotay's house rang and the door was flung wide open by a very excited five-year old girl.

"Miral!" Kate screamed and hugged her friend, instantly they ran off to play, leaving Little Wolf staring up at B'Elanna.

"Don't you want to play, Little Wolf?"

The little boy shrugged and was joined by his father. Chakotay looked tired, but if Miral was a handful, B'Elanna couldn't imagine what looking after a pair of twins was like.

"Hello B'Elanna," Chakotay said. "Can I get you anything?"

"A cup of tea would be fine."

He nodded and made for the kitchen. B'Elanna surveyed his home, like she had so many other times on their visits. It was a place of memory, her memory, a place they never got a chance to make a home together. A picture on the mantel caught her eye. There was her Captain, dressed not as a Captain, but as a mother pregnant with twins. B'Elanna thought she looked beautiful.

"Penny for your thoughts," Chakotay's voice pulled her from the trip down memory lane that was threatening to happen.

"Just thinking about her, and how much your Kate looks like her."

"Looks like her," Chakotay chuckled. "You should see her put her little hands on her hips and give orders."

B'Elanna didn't know how to tell him what Miral had seen. There was no good way to start so she said,

"Miral saw her today."

To her surprise Chakotay smiled.

"I see her everyday. In my children, in my home, and in my heart."

B'Elanna shook her head hurriedly,

"No Chakotay, she saw her in the park today. Maybe that means-"

"No B'Elanna," Chakotay said quickly. "I have mourned her."

"I know Chakotay, but maybe-"

He silenced her with a hand.

"Please B'Elanna. I will never forget her, but I have to move on. They need me."

B'Elanna respected him enough to drop it, but inside she felt like there must be something she could do. _Call me greedy_, she thought. _But I want my Captain back. I want her to see her two beautiful children, and her husband who has been through so much._

They talked about Tom and the children, soon their visit came to an end and the girls said good-bye. As they reached the door Little Wolf said,

"Miral."

"Yes?"

"Say hi to Mommy for me."

B'Elanna looked at Chakotay and saw tears well up in his dark eyes.

"I will," Miral answered, took her mother's hand, and left.

"Can we go to the park, Mommy? Please!" It had been a week since their last trip and the visit to Chakotay. B'Elanna looked out the window at the bright blue sky. She could do with a break.

"Come on."

"Yay!" Little Miral danced.

The park was busy with people playing hoverball and other games. Miral lead her mother around until they found themselves in the same place Miral had seen the Captain before. They both waited with bated breath. A minute passed, then two, then five. B'Elanna sighed. _Come on Captain, we still need you._

"I know," said a soft voice.


	2. Chapter 2

B'Elanna turned slowly afraid she might scare off the phantom. There was her Captain dressed in her dress uniform.

"Hello B'Elanna."

B'Elanna Torres had never felt the urge to hug anyone in her life, but now she wanted to throw her arms around her Captain and sob on her shoulder. Janeway spread out her arms and B'Elanna rushed into them. She felt a soft hand stroke her hair and when she pulled away they both had tear stained faces.

"But you're-" B'Elanna began but Janeway silenced her with a hand.

"Yes. That is why I've been following you."

"Why not Chakotay or Tom or even Harry?"

Janeway smiled.

"I didn't even think it was possible until I saw your Miral and she, much to both our surprise, saw me."

"What do I have to do?"

"Mommy I'm scared," Miral suddenly tugged at B'Elanna's pant leg, trying to pull her mother away from the Captain. Janeway leaned down and addressed the little girl.

"Do not be afraid, Miral. I want to thank you. You helped me and soon I will be with you always."

"If only that were true," B'Elanna said.

"Go to the wall, take the Doctor, this is both a fight of faith and science."

B'Elanna was suddenly uncomfortable. Faith was never something she grasped onto. Her mother had drilled Klingon myth and faith into her, making B'Elanna hate it.

"I-" she began but the Captain said,

"I have faith in you B'Elanna. Return me to my family."

B'Elanna nodded.

"And you little one," the Captain kneeled down to Miral. "I believe you have a message for me?"

"Little Wolf says hello," Miral said shyly.

"Tell him I miss him and will be with him soon," she stood. "I miss you all. Soon, very soon I will be back."

With that she disappeared leaving B'Elanna and Miral alone in the park.


	3. Chapter 3

Digging up deceased Admirals was not exactly something B'Elanna had planned to do in her life. Luckily Janeway had been buried in a tomb known as "The Wall." The Wall was row upon row of Star Fleet dignitaries. Some tombs had windows to look in and see the preserved bodies. Kathryn Janeway's tomb stood on an end so that people could see all of "the Captain that brought Voyager home."

B'Elanna and the Doctor stood beside the tomb. B'Elanna was glad that the Captain had made a visit to the Doctor too, otherwise convincing him to come along would have been the most awkward thing B'Elanna had ever done.

"What do we do now?" B'Elanna wondered out loud.

"Wait for instructions I suppose," the Doctor said looking about.

"What if we can't see her?"

"Let's hope we don't have that problem."

B'Elanna could think of a million other problems that could befall them, the first on the list was getting caught.

"Break it," came a voice. They whirled around and the Captain stood there with a determined look on her pale face.

"What?" B'Elanna managed.

"Break the tomb. I really don't want to wake up inside a glass box."

B'Elanna looked around. It was twilight and most of the public was at home having dinner. She found a sturdy tree branch that had recently fallen from a nearby oak and gave it a few practice swings.

"You can't be serious," the Doctor said.

"I haven't carried a phaser since Voyager, if you have any better ideas."

He shook his head.

"Good," she said cocked the branch over her shoulder like a bat and swung.

The glass shattered with a tremendous noise. Quickly they lifted the Captain's body down and laid her on the ground. The Doctor went straight to work and B'Elanna kept a lookout with the tree branch clenched tight in her hands.

Suddenly he was there, and had B'Elanna not been the swiftest runner in the Star Fleet Academy, she wouldn't have caught him before he ripped the Doctor's holographic limbs off.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!" Chakotay was beyond furious. The single red rose that he had been carried tumbled to the ground.

"Chakotay, I-"

"Are you out of your minds!"

"Chakotay please," B'Elanna begged.

"No B'Elanna!" He roared.

"Chakotay," the soft voice of the Captain cut through the fit and everything was silent.

Chakotay stared over B'Elanna's shoulder at the figure standing a few feet away.

"Kathryn?"

"Let them work, Chakotay," she said evenly.

"But you're dead."

She smiled.

"Yes, but not for much longer."

"It's been five years."

"I hope you haven't forgotten me in those years," she said with a sly smile.

"Never."

A wide smile spread across her face.

"I have to go," she said and started to fade.

"Wait!" he cried.

"Don't worry you'll see me soon," and with that she faded into the darkness.

There was a gasp behind them and they turned to see Captain lying on the ground with her eyes open.

"Kathryn," Chakotay rushed to her side.

"Nice to see you again," she said softly.

Tears streamed down Chakotay's face.

"I can't believe this. How?"

"Call it a miracle," she said softly.

B'Elanna came closer and the Captain smiled at her.

"Thank you B'Elanna. This couldn't have happened without you."

"Thank Miral," B'Elanna said. "She saw you first."

"I will."

"I suggest we get off the street," the Doctor said. "There is going to be some questions when the authorities find the tomb broken and the Captain's body gone."

"Star Fleet is going to get one hell of a shocker," the Captain said as Chakotay helped her to her feet. "But that can wait for morning."

B'Elanna wasn't sure if she should follow or not. The Captain seemed to sense her feelings.

"Go home B'Elanna. Go to Tom and Miral. Tomorrow bring Miral to see us."

"I will."

B'Elanna fled the area of the Wall and didn't stop running until she reached her door.

"Where are we going Mommy?" Miral asked as she walked next to her mother.

"To see Kate, Little Wolf, and Chakotay," B'Elanna said.

She had spent the whole night wondering if the events of the night had been nothing more then a dream. The only thing that indicated to her that it had been real was the cut on her right hand from the shattered glass. She had decided not to use a dermal regenerator on it for fear if she erased it the entire night's events would go away too.

They arrived at Chakotay's door and Miral reached up and rang the bell. The door opened and Chakotay was not the same tired man that B'Elanna had seen the last time she had come to his door. He face was aglow and he wore a warm smile.

"Come on in," he said.

At the edge of the living room Miral froze in her tracks. Kathryn Janeway sat on the couch with her children in her lap. She was reading them a story.

"Mommy it's the lady."

"Miral, this is my mommy," Kate said climbing down from Kathryn's lap and running to her friend. "She was gone a long time, now she won't leave us. Come on she's reading us Snow White."

_How appropriate_, B'Elanna thought. _A story about a woman, asleep in a glass box, coming back to life._

She felt a hand on her shoulder and she looked up into Chakotay's dark eyes.

"Thank you," he said softly.

B'Elanna nodded.

"Join us for story time?" he offered.

B'Elanna chuckled.

"Of course."

They moved to the couch on opposite sides of Kathryn and the children.

"And they all lived happily ever after."


End file.
